Daily Yellowstone journal., 1887-07-29
ABOUT JAPANESE NEWSPAPERS.
What They Exist for aud How They Are
Made In,

Nthtt Ap'
Toxic alone has eleven daily and eleven
weekly papers. only two Of which are
printed in the English language. Maya
saki has IA japanese daily and an English
weekly.
Eighteen other japanese towns support
at least one daily paper each. They are
all large, handsome sheets, printed on
good paper, in type which ever the west
ern eve, uninstructed save by the casual
perusal of tea chests, can see is good, bold
and handsome-for that kind of type.
Where the type is cast l cannot say, but
If the japanese can cut the punches for
these intricate h~ieroglyphics, they must
be wonderfully well adVnced in the me-
chanical arts.
Curious looking sheets they are, these
japanese papers, but they are doing a
noble work, and before describing them
in detail it may be well to explain their
mission. They do not go in very strongly
for news. Their purpose is chiefly edu-
cational. The tradition seems to survive
in the navy, Judging from late events.
These papers, printed in their own tongue,
are doing the work Of gentlemen ushers
to civilization. introducing the japanese
to the world at large. Their columns are
largely filled with TRANSACTIONS from Eng
lish and American papers and accounts
of the doings Of civilized people.
The truly japanese papers have their
little pcculiarities. The title seems to
have no particular fixed place, except
that il must be on the last page. l fancy
they generally make up the rest of the
paper first and then throw the title in
anywhere on the fourth page, unless an
''ad' comes in at the last minute, when
they leave it out altogether. | am not
sure of this, for | have never seen a
japanese paper made up; | only judge so
from the fact that there are always three
or four immense hieroglyphs of a very
teachesty character rambling around
these japanese fourth pages, with a
strong tendency toward the upper right
hand corner, which is where, / sm given
to understand, the japanese paper COM
n However, | may be all wrong.
These mammoth characters may only I've
displayed lads" for aught | know. They
occur in every paper, and all look alike.
A japanese newspaper doesn't need a
title anyhow. They are all ''shimbuns."
''Shimbun' means newspaper i'll Jap
anese. and the japanese are a plain
spoken race, and believe in calling a
'%'shimbun'' a ''shimbun." They venture
so far as to a qualifying word if there
is more than one ''shimbun' in the place.
or if the "shimbun' is some particular
sort Of '%'shimbun." Thus there are
mainichi Cmorningl, nichi daily, eirl
illustrated). daimos (ofiicial) and other
''shimbuns, " but the last title fits them
all, and this, though monotonous. is
sensible. You may name a ''%shimbun"
after all the luminaries of heaven, and
still ii remains, in truth and in fact, only
a ''shimbun."
The japanese newspapers are a little
confusing to read until one gets used to
them, but generally their makeup is as
follows: The fourth page seems to be de.
voted TO news items and clippings. They
are a little careless about crediting. |
have not been able to find a single credit
unless something japanese, which looks
like a centipede in a fit and occurs fire.
quently, means exchange" The third
page is given up To editorials and the
second to IA feuilleton. ! am not sure Of
the editorials, but | am confident Of the
feuilleton. II has that solid four column
and a half look about tit breathes that
odor Of utter inanity which marks the
newspaper short (short! heaven ave the
mark story. Besides, it has a picture as
q rule. This seems to dispel the other
wise reasonable idea that it is an editorial
on a subject which has thoroughly
reused the editor. The first (last) page.
though, is the most Ineligible and in
teresting after all, for here are the adj
vertisements. Here we find the cuts
familiar 10 us from our earliest days.
The monster bottles of various bitters.
beers and other liquids, medicinal and
intoxicating; the man with two wooden
legs, who, presumably, is the only man
in town who does not get his shoes Of
Katayama Seitaso. and others which !
positively decline to mention, except in the
advertising columns at the regular rates.
And the gorgeous japanese display
''ads' | have hkened, by implication,
the body Of these papers TO the outer
cuticle Of a tea chest; but us for these
lads" the tea chest lis fools to EN-
Cor. Electrical World.